Knights and Samurai
by WinterVines
Summary: On dresspheres and Auron. Rikku-centric.


More dabbling in a very late fashion. This has been commented on before, but the idea didn't leave me alone.

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Knights and Samurai

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At first she thinks she's hallucinating. Underneath Bevelle is a labyrinth of patterned, glowing walls that all look the same. Jumping down pits blind and then riding up elevator platforms had made Rikku a little dizzy too.

But then she looks down and she sees the Masamune in her hands, courtesy of the new Dark Knight dressphere they've stumbled upon.

The plates on her armor clack as she shifts to look at her companions. The Al Bhed girl had volunteered to test it out first.

Paine is admiring the strength inherent to the sphere—after all, the knight types were up her alley. She doesn't seem to notice the way Rikku has almost stopped moving entirely or the way her fingers are clenched around the braided hilt almost to the point of aching. But Rikku doesn't blame her because Paine can't recognize the symbol. There's still a lot she doesn't know about before.

Yuna, on the other hand, is giving her one of those _looks_. She almost can't take the pity she sees starting to grow there in those mismatched eyes—not from Yuna, who has her own losses to mull over. They both know of disappearing comrades all too well. Still, for a second, there's a sharp pang that just won't go away.

"Rikku," her cousin begins with a waver, and then she stops herself short with a hand clenched on the symbol of her white Gunner's top.

The thief is glad she does. They're supposed to be making sure that Baralai doesn't do something stupid with more of Yevon's secrets. Not to mention the whole reason they started this quest. There's way too much going on right now for group therapy.

Unfortunately, something in Yuna's tone catches Paine's attention, and her ruby gaze is drawn away from the blade and up to Rikku's empty face. At least, she hopes it's empty, since that's about the total amount of emotion she wants to feel right now.

The dark-haired woman's brow furrows as she looks between the ex-summoner and the ex-guardian, but she doesn't say anything at first. Leather shifts on the Warrior getup as Paine crosses her arms, and Rikku thinks that if she asks anything, words are going to come spilling out like vomit, and nobody wants that.

It's at that point that Rikku realizes that Bevelle is too _quiet_. Fiends had been popping up left and right, they were on the way to check up on Spira's most dangerous machina, and yet there was only silence. The halls should be howling or something.

With a nervous chuckle, Rikku makes noise because she can't take the quiet anymore. She reaches up to ruffle her hair, but she doesn't account for the new sphere's decoration. Her hand hits something hard and metal instead. The beads in her hair whip into the head-guard with a clack. Rikku winces as she shakes her hand out.

With her act of clumsiness, however, the thread of tension in the room snaps as everyone breathes. They don't talk about the moment of awkwardness as they bolster their defenses for the fights to come next. There's potions to be drank and garment grids to be modified. That gives Rikku a second to examine the relic in her hands.

She's not going to question how she got Auron's blade. That's not something she can handle right now.

The Masamune is something she remembers well, though she's not really sure why. When they had found that rusted sword near the sunken cave and returned it to the statue on Mushroom Rock Road, she followed up the elevator. Rikku had always wondered why she did, and maybe it was for this.

There's a hidden strength in the double-forked blade, and although the metal looks thin and sharp, it's still heavy. She needs two hands to move it around. Still, she feels nearly indestructible, like she could slay any fiend that materialized. Power was in her hands.

But all the power she could ever muster couldn't undo what was already done. The only memories she can bring back are the ones she already holds.

She heaves and uses both her arms to swing the blade around. Paine takes a long, quick step to the side when the sword makes its arc and hits the ground with thunk. It'll take a little time to get used to the weight. Rikku gives her a sheepish look in apology.

"How do I look?" she questions, striking a pose with one hand akimbo. She avoids Yuna's piercing gaze and steadily looks into the distance like some hero in a fairy tale.

It was just a sword.

-.-.-

It isn't until Rikku's mastered the Dark Knight dressphere and stumbles on the Samurai sphere that she thinks the Fayth, who were _supposed_ to be enjoying their time off, might be playing some big cosmic prank on her.

Lots of things had been happening since Bevelle, triggering problems in old temples all over. There wasn't a lot of time to be picky about what she fought in, but really, she didn't have the will to change out of the dressphere once she got the hang of it. All of those dark aeons reminded her of the past, so she hung on to the only connection she could.

They say that dresspheres can reflect memories, though Rikku didn't expect it to be _her_ memories.

Killika is still hot despite everything, and even though the Dark Knight shows slats of skin in places, the heavier plates still make her sweat like those awful jumpsuits she used to wear in the desert. She volunteers to try out the newly found sphere with the hopes that it'll be something much more revealing and thus cooler. As she feels her garment grid do its job, she could concede that her new garb was slightly more breathable, but it wasn't what she had in mind.

This was a little more than just a sword.

Yuna's lets out a surprised gasp with a quiet, "Oh!"

Rikku's surprised too.

The red coat has been modified a little, but it's still the same rich shade of red. She doesn't know if this is a good thing or not. In true Rikku fashion, the coat's been opened to reveal her bindings, but in turn, her shoulders have added leather. It's almost different enough to not make the connection.

But the sleeves are still large enough to drown her hands, and she could tie something to the belt woven around her middle if she really wanted to. This whole experience _could_ be a good reason to start drinking.

Rikku's barely breathing as she feels closer and farther from Auron than ever.

For a second, she won't look at either Yuna nor Paine as she fights the tidal wave of memories and tries not to drown. Her eyes are clenched shut, but that doesn't keep the images at bay. She wants to scream that it's not fair, that people who save the world should be rewarded and not punished, but it's not going to change anything.

With a stubborn tilt to her jaw, she opens her eyes and forces herself to look at her teammates. Paine is safer, and with a little practice, she can build up her nerve. The older woman has a face too blank to read, but then again, Rikku's never been really good at that anyway. Paine isn't scowling or reaching out to comfort her, and that's good enough.

Yuna looks like she wants to say something, but all she does is watch. Rikku can practically hear all those heartfelt words knocking around in her cousin's head anyway. It isn't anything different than she's already told herself. Yuna understands, and that's enough too.

It would be one thing if just the coat bore a passing resemblance, but it's the same sword too. The katana is heavy, although she doesn't drop it this time—unlike when she begged Auron to let her try it around that campfire in the Calm Lands.

She's a little stronger than she used to be. With a grunt of effort, she hefts the blade up onto her shoulder. The noises were definitely necessary when lugging this thing around.

"It suits you," Paine offers.

Compliments from her are rare, but Rikku can recognize one when she hears it. Paine's got a slightly more knowing look now, and the swordmaster nods toward the blade. Rikku nods back and feels the corner of her mouth try to tip upwards.

"Yeah, it does."

She feels so much all at once, like a maelstrom of past, present, and future all converging on her at once. But she will not cry.

She learned how to be strong from the best.

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Thanks for reading!


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